


A Mere Coincidence

by CrypticGabriel



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Anonymity, Blind Date, Double Dating, Keith's alias is Akira, M/M, Mentions of War, Misunderstandings, Online Relationship, Porn Blogs, Pornography, Sex Toys, Sexting, Shiro's alias is Atlas, Veteran Shiro (Voltron), side Allurance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-30
Updated: 2018-08-30
Packaged: 2019-07-04 15:29:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15844152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrypticGabriel/pseuds/CrypticGabriel
Summary: Keith ran a blog, and he could admit that he enjoyed sharing promiscuous and suggestive images of himself to improve his self-confidence. But one day, he stumbled upon a blog run by a man named Atlas. As their relationship began, Keith was also showing interest with Shiro, after being set up with him on a blind double date. But he would soon find that Shiro and Atlas were one in the same.





	A Mere Coincidence

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Birthday to me!! Just like last year, I'm posting a fic as like a little gift to myself. I hope you guys enjoy!

_Keith loved what he did. Sure,_ posting anonymous naked pictures of himself on a blog started off as a hobby, and it was during a time where he needed to find an outlet to express self-confidence. But now, it was more than a coping mechanism for him. He regularly received donations from fans, even when he’d flat out said that an actual porn stream of him was highly unlikely. He needed to find the proper persona in order to pull it off without giving himself away. Which, in quick and simple terms, that was never going to happen.

His blog was called The Red Paladin. He’s received nicknames over the years, like Red and Akira, which was the alias he had on his blog’s bio. He would answer to both of them, but Akira was a more likely alias that was used by his online friends and fans.

This led to the observation that surprisingly enough, there was a whole community with blogs like his. He’d met interesting friends over the years, and his overall experience had been so positive. He really appreciated that, especially since the whole reason he started to was to do something to make him feel better about himself. However, there was someone in this community that definitely piqued his interest.

> _“Hi there! My name is Atlas. I’m new around here, and I’m excited to fulfill your needs. I’ve been through one hell of a war, and I’m afraid that it does show, but I’d hold the entire universe on my shoulders for you, baby.”_

One night, he just so happened to stumble upon this newer account on his feed. Atlas was scarred up to hell in his pictures. Keith could see the telltale signs of a prosthetic arm in some of his pictures and videos, but Keith knew exactly how he felt, given they both shared a common motive for making their blogs. His online friends were praising him already, and they had mentioned his existence to Keith in passing. He was immediately interested in him.

Atlas posted a _lot_ of cumshot videos and under the belt pictures in the span of only three months. From risqué to flat out explicit, he did it all without question. Unlike Keith, he took requests. If someone sent a message to him about what they wanted to see, more often than not, he’d do it. That undoubtedly made this man a more popular account than his was, but he had more than enough respect for him. Besides, his girth was enough to make Keith’s mouth water, and he may have also made requests anonymously for several different positions and shots that he’d wanted to see.

One night, he noticed that Atlas had unlocked instant messaging on his blog. Keith always had that for his personal blog and when talking to his friends in the community, but he figured that this was the perfect opportunity to become friends with him. His dog Kosmo was the only witness to this. If he could talk, he probably would have warned him against it. But honestly, he found himself wanting to get to know Atlas more and more, as he watched his improving self-confidence and ogled over his physique. Maybe he needed to hear whatever he wanted to tell him today! It could possibly make his day. Or it might just turn out that Atlas would find him annoying and rightfully tell him to piss off. There was only one way to find out. He shot him a simple message, hoping that it didn’t come off as too strong. And he didn’t want to admit that he broke character, but he absolutely did.

> **red-lion:** Hi, Atlas. This is Akira the Red Paladin. I’ve been around on this website for a long while, but seeing your account and your posts reminded me of how I started off. I’m sure you get all the time that you’re beyond attractive and gorgeous, but I like to think that I’m your biggest fan. Allow me to become the honorary president of the Atlas support squad!

But about an hour after sending his message, Keith suddenly realized something while he was eating his dinner. Access to send messages was only enabled for Atlas if both blogs followed each other. How long had Atlas been following him? He was pretty sure that he was the one that found him first, not the other way around.

There was then a ping on his laptop, and he reached over to check it. Atlas responded!

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Oh gosh, Akira! Your posts before I started making this blog were what inspired me to start up. With the confidence you have, it didn’t hurt for me to try it out. Even with how I look. You have no idea how much your message means to me. Thank you so much!

It brought a smile to Keith’s face, and he responded to him:

> **red-lion:** What do you mean by how you look? It doesn’t matter how many reminders of being in war are on your skin. You’ll always be gorgeous to me.  
> And your fans too lol

He’d added that second message after the realization of what he was implying to Atlas hit him. He blushed darkly and waited for him to respond. It was taking too long, though. He hid his face with a groan, now embarrassed. It wasn’t like him to admit his attraction to another account runner, other than the exaggerated arousing comments played up for the community’s audience. Although he’d never interacted with Atlas like that before, the thought always crossed his mind.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Oh Akira, you flatter me! <3

Atlas’ message made Keith’s heart thrum harder in his chest. He was perfect! So he ended up attempting going back into character. He wanted to continue showing his support for the blog and bringing him more viewers. It was the least he could do.

He took a deep breath and started to type again.

> **red-lion:** I often promote other blogs on my blog with my own comments complimenting them and their images, but I always ask first to find out if that’s okay. So would that be alright?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I’m more than okay with that.

The response was instantaneous. His face was a bright red!

> **red-lion:** Perfect! Be prepared though, I love to play.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Me too ;)

_God._ Keith forced himself away from the message tab so he could just _breathe._ He never expected Atlas to be so goddamn lovable when interacting with him, and he meant what he said to him. He was going to have so much fun playing with him and making sure that he felt as comfortable in his own skin as possible.

He waited a few days first. But when he saw an opportunity to give him a good shout out, he took it immediately.

The image was of Atlas stretching the elastic of his boxers out just enough to show his softened cock, but as the images progressed when scrolling downward, he slowly revealed his growing erection to the point where it was heavy in his flesh hand, dripping with precoma. Keith was in the breakroom at his job at the time when curiosity got the better of him, and he did his best to hide the tent that almost instantly formed in his pants. He just had to say something!

> _“Wow Atlas, baby! Wish I had that in my mouth. I’d make you feel amazing!”_

Instead of replying in the form of another reblog, he received a message in another tab.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Omg I’d love to see you choke on it <3

Keith’s throat went dry when he was sent a different image, one that wasn’t in the public post. Atlas’ dick was so hard, and he could practically see it twitching and dripping. And he was implying that it was like this because of _him_ and possibly what _he_ said. Did he do this with everyone that responded to him? Or was he just special? He responded to his message with that, but of course he had to add in some form of excited keyboard smashing to express how much he _appreciated_ this glorious image.

Atlas responded several moments later.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I’m thinking of you, Akira.

He was so bold and confident, and it put his own confidence to shame. He was perfectly okay with that.

> **red-lion:** I’d love to continue playing with you, but I have to go back to work. But I’m right here. Keep doing it baby  
> Keep thinking of me choking on you.  
> I want you to cum while thinking of me

He didn’t respond for several minutes, but when he did it was full of bold obscenities and expletives that gave away his intense pleasure. Was he implying that he came? Did he really just…

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Holy shit  
> Akira  
> Thank you<3

Before Keith went back to work, he looked on his feed again and saw Atlas’ latest update. But it was a beautiful shot of his abs with cum splattered on his skin. He wished he was there to help him clean it all up.

\--

_“Hello there! Earth to Keith!”_

_“Huh?” Keith was startled out of_ a fantasy when he heard the shrill voice of one of his coworkers. Lance just so happened to be friends with his friend Pidge, and he ended up growing on him. It’d be hard to hang out with Pidge if he didn’t like him at least a little bit, after all. Even if he was a little too shrill sometimes.

“I’ve been trying to talk to you for the last five minutes!” he groaned, sitting across from him at the bar.

“About what?” he huffed. His fantasy thinking of Atlas was far more important than whatever he had to say, in all honesty.

“Lance is trying to ask if you wanted to go on a date.”

He nearly choked on his drink. “N-no offense, dude, but I don’t think a date with you would last thirty seconds.”

“Not with me!” he scoffed. “Rude. I mean, don’t you wanna go out with me and Allura? She has a friend that’s single.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Just because I’m one of your acquaintances that just so happens to be gay, that doesn’t mean that you can set me up with any other gay guy you know. That’s not how it works.”

“Well, Keith, it might not be so bad.” Hunk was among their group of friends, as well. He decided to weigh in on the situation. “You’re sulking and brooding all the time. Maybe it’s time for a boyfriend.”

He puffed his cheeks. “Guys, I’m not _lonely._ I just haven’t really had the time for relationships.”

“And now’s a perfect chance!” Lance grinned. “His name’s Takashi Shirogane. He works with Allura at the university, and he’s super into astrophysics. We wouldn’t be setting you two up if we thought you didn’t like each other.”

“I’d hope not,” he teased with a snort. If it was someone that Lance knew personally, he wouldn’t trust him at all. But this was a friend of Allura’s. Maybe they were onto something. “Alright. I’ll humor you. When’s this at?”

“This Friday at eight. We’re going to Vrepit Sal’s All-You-Can-Eat Buffet.”

“Aw man, I love that place!” Pidge groaned. “Why didn’t you invite me?”

“It’s a _date,_ Pidge,” he chuckled.

“Yeah. At a buffet.”

“Keith!” Lance scowled and pointed at him. “Shut your face.”

He deadpanned. “Wow. You’re _really_ convincing me to go on this date.”

Hunk chuckled and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Aw, c’mon, you might really like it!”

His cheeks turn rosy while thinking about the possibilities, and he shied away briefly. “Maybe. I wouldn’t get too excited just yet. I haven’t even met the guy.”

“That’s the beauty of a blind date!” Lance grinned. “So you’ll come?”

He gave it some thought, making sure that he fully realized what he was getting into. “Yeah. Alright. I’ll go.”

\--

_Funny. Usually, at the prospect of_ a date or being set up on a date, Keith wouldn’t be thinking about another man. But… what the blind date didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. He didn’t have the heart to reject Lance’s offer, and maybe his friends were right about this turning out okay. Unfortuantely, his obsession with Atlas was only getting stronger, the more that he spent time with him.

It was different when he was having conversations with him and spending time with him in private. This was personal, and Atlas really was a sweet guy. It was fun to watch him get flustered whenever Keith mentioned that he’d sent him certain requests in the past. One time, Atlas had asked if he was willing to start doing requests as well, which he’d told him no. Once someone opened the floodgates, all sorts of crazies would end up flocking over. He was surprised at how open Atlas was with requests and how he was more than happy to fulfill anything that was thrown at him.

Surely, there had to have been times where he deleted freaky messages as soon as he received them, but he never made any point of that on his blog or mentioned it in passing. All Keithk new was that Atlas did every single thing that he threw his way.

However, despite his refusal to do requests on his blog, he was willing to fulfill any request Atlas gave to him.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Akira?
> 
> **red-lion:** Yeah?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I have a request.

He couldn’t help the grin on his face.

**red-lion:** What do you need, baby?

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Do you think you could  
> Um  
> Use one of the toys you had in one of your gifsets??

“Shit…” Keith couldn’t help the moan that escaped his lips. He started to type hurriedly.

> **red-lion:** What spurred this on, Atlas?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** There’s this coworker IRL that invited me to a double date. Not too comfortable with the idea but wanted to try it out. But I can’t help but think of you.
> 
> _Huh._ Sounded familiar.
> 
> **red-lion:** Bad boy lol  
> I’m kinda in the same boat tbh  
> I can’t help myself tho. I’ll take care of u
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Are we horrible people??? :0
> 
> **red-lion:** Nah. We don’t know the guys. And what they don’t know won’t hurt them.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I mean  
> I don’t mind going on a date or anything  
> But knowing that I don’t know them and what they might think of me is a little scary.  
> This blog helps me feel better about myself, but you give me the confidence to be with other people.

Keith’s face was red as he saw these messages transpire. He smiled faintly and read them over and over. He was the sweetest, and in his opinion, anyone would be lucky to have him. If anything, he was a little jealous that he had a chance to date someone in his real life, but he was going to give him as much support as he could.

> **red-lion:** You’re very strong, Atlas. Anyone’s lucky to have you <3  
> Of course I’ll help you. And I think it’ll help me too.

He further brought this point home when he grabbed his phone, turning the camera on. He stripped himself to his briefs, and he started to pull the band down inch by inch before taking a picture of himself from behind. He made sure that he got the best shot of his ass, the way it was suggestively being shown to the viewer despite his underwear. He sent that to Atlas.

He waited several moments, his face growing red with each second. He couldn’t help himself and took the boxers off now, hurrying to grab his bottle of lube. He helped get himself settled on the bed. The little box of toys he had was right under his bed, and he grabbed that so he could find the specific dildo that Atlas wanted to see. However, he was taking a while to answer him back.

What he found though, when he looked at his messages again, was that Atlas was now showing him his own lewd images, suggesting that he was already hard for Keith. He let out a shaky groan, his stomach tensing while settling down on the sheets.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Think of me, Akira.

He grinned and slicked up his fingers. He spread his legs suggestively and sent him an image of his exposed hole. He took great lengths to make sure that his face wasn’t being shown in the shot, despite the angle.

> **red-lion:** Fuck me <3

He made sure he could see the messages from Atlas pouring in on his laptop, angling it closer to his face so he could see the images. And meanwhile, he had his phone at the ready so he could easily take images. He showed Atlas the way he opened himself up with his fingers, spreading them open while easing them in one at a time. He was teasing the man, and he was making a big show over it.

He hoped that Atlas knew that he didn’t do this for just anyone. It was fast but thrilling, and it was just as exciting as the first time they did this. Atlas’ messages were so encouraging, as well! He grinned in delight, noticing that the pauses between messages were getting longer and longer. He was probably getting more into it.

Keith grinned while retracting his fingers. He first showed Atlas the dildo in one image, and using his messy hand he took hold of the toy by the base, his clean hand holding the phone and bringing it closer to between his legs. He wanted Shiro to see all the action down there. As he pressed the tip to his puckered hole, sweat started to bead on his forehead. This was getting a lot more intense than he’d ever expected. With each inch that he moved it in, he did his best to take as many images of the act as possible in between shaky gasps and moans.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Fuck <3  
> Akira you’re taking it so well  
> Wanna see that cock split you open.

“Oh, fuck,” he gasped and started to move it inside him, each thrust growing deeper and hitting him in the right spots. He was shaking and breathless, thinking of Atlas being in the room with him.

When he closed his eyes, he did imagine him, his weight on top of him while he drove himself inside of him like his body was made for doing that. Atlas had such a large physique in his images, and he wondered what it would feel like if he was nearly suffocated underneath him. He wondered how well he’d give it to him, or how much bigger he’d be than his dildo.

“Atlas,” he moaned out his name without restraint. There was a blissful grin on his face while he had these thoughts. “Oh, Atlas!”

He looked over and saw that Atlas was giving him more images. With each one, Atlas looked like he was getting closer and closer, his foreskin pulled back to reveal how slicked he was with precum. His fist was all but a blur, and he tried to emulate that by moving the toy faster. He could feel the satisfying stretch of it, and he bent his legs back so he could have the angle that he craved.

_“Atlas!”_ He cried as he suddenly reached his end, white, hot pleasure overtaking him and making his heart stop. With each wave of his orgasm, he felt his entire body shaking, from the tips of his fingers to the way that his hole hungrily clenched around the toy inside him. His ears were ringing for several minutes, but when he was finally able to form coherent thoughts, he started to take pictures of the aftermath.

His favorite one was a picture were some of his smile was showing, but it wasn’t enough to give away his face. He sent all of them to Shiro, and at the same time Shiro was sharing his own finish that was all over his scarred, toned abdomen.

> **red-lion:** That was amazing <3333
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Right???  
> I aim to please ;)
> 
> **red-lion:** //// you dick lol

He suppressed a chuckle and smiled, and while he was importing the pictures from his latest fun to his computer, he was getting ready to make another post. The two of them both liked to post teasers of their fun to their followers so that they could have them speculate. They both had a lot of fun with it.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Thank you, Akira. Really.  
> Idk what I’d do without you.
> 
> **red-lion:** Good luck on your date!
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Ooo double meaning, clever! <3 And the same to you. Good night, Akira!
> 
> **red-lion:** Good night Atlas <3

Keith smiled and was getting ready to share his post when he noticed that Atlas did it first. He peaked at it and saw that he had several pictures shared with the caption: _“Only one man can get me like this <3”_

It was endearing to look at it, but he knew that Keith was already taking his own comment a step further. He only shared two pictures; the shot with him shoving the dildo inside himself and then his favorite picture with part of his smile in the shot.

> _“What I want the man who carries the universe on his shoulders to do to me <3”_

**\--**

_“I can’t believe you talked me_ into this,” Keith groaned as he pulled into the parking lot with Lance. “What if I don’t even like him? Or what if he doesn’t like me?”

“If either of those things happen, then you guys won’t go out together again,” he said simply. “C’mon, I think you’ll have a lot of fun. He seems to be excited to meet you.”

“You wouldn’t even let me look up his online profiles. I hate blind dates.”

“Alright. If you really do have a problem with the date, then just say so. I’ll take you home,” he insisted. “They’re right inside. Just say hi, have some dinner, and maybe you two will get to know each other in between.”

Keith rolled his eyes as they stepped inside the restaurant. “That makes me feel so much better.”

Lance found their table and walked over. “Allura!” he called with a smile.

His girlfriend Allura looked up with a smile. “There you are!” She stood up. “Hey Keith, you made it.”

“Yeah, I made it,” he chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck after shaking hands with her. He noticed that she was sitting alone. “So, where’s this Shiro guy at?”

“He’s freshening up in the bathroom,” she answered while the waitress was giving them another two sets of utensils and napkins, now that the four of them in the reservation were all here. “Now Keith, he’s very shy. He wanted me to warn you before you saw him that he’s an amputee. This is his first date since his accident.”

An amputee? Why would Keith have a problem with that? “Hey, that’s alright. I don’t have a problem with that.”

“Keith, just be nice.” She smiled gently. “He’s coming over! Give him a nice smile, say hi, shake hands—”

“I know how to act on a date, Allura,” he remarked, slightly disgruntled, but when he heard Shiro clearing his throat from almost right behind him, he jumped and jerked his head back to look.

It was like he was staring at a _god_ wearing slimming black jeans and a flannel. A _flannel_ man… Of course, the T-shirt he wore underneath didn’t do anything to hide how toned he was under his clothing. His hair was white, but he didn’t look older with it. It had a nice sheen that looked natural. And maybe he preferred having bleached hair, and he didn’t really mind that. There was this long scar over the bridge of his nose. And of course, there was the prosthetic right arm that Allura was more or less hinting at in her warning.

He could swear that he saw Lance smirking in his peripheral vision, as if he knew that he was right. But he didn’t have the energy to snap at him now. He was breathless, his face feeling hot. “Hi.”

“Hi,” he chuckled. “Keith, right?”

“Uh-huh.” His throat was dry. “Hi.”

At that, Shiro started to laugh. “A man of many words, I see.” He started to hold his right arm out to shake, but he immediately retracted it in favor of the left. “Nice to meet you.”

Keith’s smile grew, and he politely took his left hand to shake, in case he was uncomfortable with the prosthesis. “Nice to meet you too, Shiro. You come here often?”

“Allura and I both come here on our lunch breaks at the university. It’s one of my favorite places to eat.”

“Speaking of, hello!” Allura called and happily waved. “We’re still here!”

They both bashfully went to the table. The four of them all sat in their own areas at the small, round table. Keith was sitting right across from Shiro, and he watched him well after they’d gotten their first round of food. Of course, Allura and Lance were being disgustingly cute with each other, but the other two could barely say two words to each other. They were both flustered and shy.

Finally, it seemed that Allura was the one that noticed they were having a hard time communicating with each other.

“So Keith,” she started, “why don’t you tell Shiro about where you work?”

He gulped. “I uh… I work in sales, at this office branch for a tech company. It’s not really that exciting.”

“Excuse me?” Lance gasped and quickly rose a hand to his chest. “My job is _very_ exciting!”

“It’s not,” he chuckled. “It’s really not.”

Allura started to laugh while Keith pouted. “Now Shiro, tell Keith what _you_ do.”

Shiro’s smile didn’t once waver. “I’m an Astrophysics researcher at Altea University, and I also work in the lab with Allura. We regularly test hypotheses, and I like to share my findings with my classes.”

“You teach too?” he asked curiously.

“Well, as I’m preparing for my dissertation, I am. I’m working alongside Dr. Sanda, the Dean of the department.”

“Cool,” he grinned while they were eating dinner together. “See, Lance? Now, _that’s_ an exciting job.”

Lance pouted and went back to his own meal. Allura was smitten with him, regardless.

Keith started to get up with his empty plate. “I’m gonna go grab some more.”

“May I join you?” Shiro asked and started to stand up.

“Of course.” He smiled as they walked together. He heard Lance encouraging them a little too boisterously, and despite his reddened face he paid no mind to his comments.

“Quite the character, isn’t he?” Shiro teased.

“Yeah.” He laughed and started grabbing more food. He kept looking at Shiro. “So, Allura was telling me you haven’t been on a date in a long time.”

“Well, yeah…” He sighed. “I don’t really like to talk about my accident that much. I was overseas… fighting someone else’s war, really. And we were investigating an abandoned town, searching for survivors or traps. This was all in case we wanted to make this area a secondary base for us. Everything in my mind was telling me to go into one of these building, but I went against my better judgment. There was a bomb in there, and well…” He shrugged his right shoulder, as if to emphasize that this was what caused him to lose his arm.

“Shit…” He hissed under his breath. He couldn’t imagine experiencing that type of pain. “I’m so sorry, Shiro.”

“It’s alright. It’s been four years, and I’ve had some help and support along the way. But unfortunately… Adam, my boyfriend at the time, didn’t really want to stick around for that.”

He groaned at that. “What a dick.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” he shrugged. “I don’t blame him. He’d told me he didn’t’ want me to go, over and over. And I didn’t listen. I wanted to go there for myself. Plus, not everyone is into being with people that have been in bad accidents or people that are sick. They can’t take that type of stress, but that doesn’t mean that they’re a horrible person. If anything, he did me a favor. But that doesn’t make it hurt any less.”

“I’m sure.” They walked along the assembly line together, and Keith kept grabbing random food. I haven’t been in that many relationships, myself. People sicken me.”

Shiro suddenly sputtered out a snort, covering his mouth. “Likewise.” He looked over. “So, how’d you get that scar on your cheek?”

He set his dish down so he could touch his scar. He chuckled at the memory. “Mine’s not nearly as interesting as yours. It’s kinda stupid, really. In high school, I wasn’t messing around with some friends somewhere that we shouldn’t have been at. And I fell while trying to climb the fence before we could get caught. So, I snagged my face on some nasty ass branch and ended up spending the night downtown.”

“Ouch…” He chuckled while they started to walk back to the table. As they sat down, Lance and Allura paused from ogling over each other to instead turn their attention to their friends.

“I see you two are really hitting it off!” Allura grinned.

Keith blushed and diverted his eyes, while Shiro did the same. “I-I mean, yeah. We’re having a good time.”

Shiro nodded, a little quiet now. He found his bashful demeanor endearing, and when we got comfortable enough to talk to Keith on a real level, that was even better. “Do you think we can do this again?”

“I like that idea,” Keith agreed. “I’m sure there are other things we can all do together.”

The other couple gave each other the most incriminating, devious grins as they nodded. “Of course!”

“W-wait,” Shiro stammered, “may I specify what I mean?” He blushed.

“Yeah, me too. Stop looking at me like that, Lance!”

They were laughing too much to take notice of their friends’ embarrassment, but Keith and Shiro were still able to have a good time together. And that night, when Allura and Lance kissed good night before going to their respective cars, the other couple gingerly shook hands as a silent promise that they were looking forward to the next time they were able to be together.

“See, I told you that you’d hit it off!” Lance grinned.

“Don’t talk too loud, you’ll ruin it,” he grumbled. “But yeah. I had fun. But I’m not sure if he’s really interested in being in a long term relationship with me.”

“Are you kidding?” he gasped. “Did you even _see_ how attracted he was to you? He was totally digging you!”

“He’s probably just trying to figure out how to be nice to me when we’re all just having out as friends. Just with us being the third and fourth wheels.”

“Denial,” Lance teased while he drove. “Well, Allura and I can figure out something else we can do, and maybe by then you’ll have your head out of your ass long enough to ask the man out for real.”

“Lance…” He groaned and looked out the window. He pondered the thought for a little while, during the drive home. What if Shiro _did_ like him? He couldn’t possibly still support him if he knew that he had a porn blog and interacted with other men for fun.

Wait. That was a bit too sharp of an assumption. He lessened that ultimatum by thinking that a hobby like this could make or break a relationship, so he should expect some kind of opposition. But who knows. If Shiro did like it a lot, then maybe he could help him make a blog of his own. Making something like that for himself could probably help his self-confidence a ton. If there was a future with him, eh could bring that up later on.

\--

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Did you have fun on your date?

_Keith blushed as Kosmo snuggled closer_ to him on the bed. He read the messages on his phone, and it took him a bit to respond. What, with the lap dog in a wolf’s body currently trying to lovingly crush his arm underneath his weight.

> **red-lion:** yeah we had fun. He was really nice, a little shy. I can’t wait to see him again.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** That’s great! <3 I had a good time too. My IRL friend wants to set me up with him again.
> 
> **red-lion:** Are you gonna?

He took a deep breath. He wanted to see Shiro again himself, but part of him wondered if it was a little weird that he was still happily talking with Atlas as if they were together. They _both_ were doing this, actually. Did they really enjoy their dates as much as they said they did?

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Yknow what, yeah  
> I’m gonna see him again.
> 
> **red-lion:** Awesome! Tell me all about it ok?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Of course :)

He was feeling pretty confident that night. Before going to bed, he shared another picture of himself in the bathroom, feeling like he was walking on air.

> _“Feeling loved tonight <3”_

\--

_Things had gone so well between_ Keith and Shiro that they had gone on their third double date with Allura and Lance. After their night at the buffet, they’d gone to the movies—where they were very invested in the movie while Allura and Lance were making out. And for this date, the four of them went to a winery together.

It was so domestic, something that Allura and Lance absolutely would come up with, but Keith felt like that this should be a date between a couple that had been together for a very long time. So of course, the other couple felt more out of place. Allura and Lance were looking at the different wine selections, wondering which ones would taste more satisfying or be better for them. So, while they were preoccupied, Keith and Shiro decided to do some exploring around the vineyard. It was like a challenge, to see if they got lost in there. During that time, they were able to talk to each other more.

“It really is nice out here,” Keith mused, looking around the property. With all the different garden plots and sections where workers were gathering grapes, it was quaint and entrancing.

“This is looking a lot less like a maze than I thought it would be,” Shiro chuckled. “What do you think? Should we get Allura and Lance concerned about where we are?”

“I dunno… I think Allura would find us from a mile away.” They walked through together. “Hey, look!” In the distance, he saw a large tree further out in the vineyard. There was a lot of nice shade and scenery, and he gently tugged on Shiro’s arm. “Let’s go over there.”

“Yeah.” A grin formed on his face. “I’ll race you!”

“Huh?” Before he can register what he said, Shiro already started running over to the tree. “Wait up! You got a head start! No fair.” He rushed after him, picking up a decent amount of speed behind him.

“C’mon, catch up!” Shiro laughed, and neither of them cared about any workers turning their heads to watch.

It was incredibly unorthodox, but neither of them cared. They had such a good time. Keith was starting to feel breathless, but Shiro kept him motivated. Right before they were almost there, he grabbed a hold of his prosthetic arm, which startled him enough to stumble. Keith tripped as well, falling on top of him just as they were right near the finish line. They looked at each other, surprised and breathless with their chests heaving. Their first reaction to all of this was to laugh at each other, Keith blushing and falling back while he attempted to touch the tree despite where he was pinned.

Shiro looked so happy, his eyes shining and his cheeks rosy. And seeing this relaxed, ecstatic expression made him look more attractive. Keith was in awe, his eyes locking with his for a moment while their faces were close together. His breath was shaky, and with his face reddening as his eyes kept unintentionally traveling down to his lips, Keith gave him a sheepish smile.

In response, Shiro just grinned and reached up with his prosthesis, touching the base of the trunk. “I win.”

\--

_They composed themselves under the tree._ It seemed that they got themselves lost just enough to where Allura and Lance would have to look for them, since it was getting rather late. All they really did was lean back against the tree together and pretend to be stranded, making it fun for the two of them.

“So, what’s your favorite place in the world?” They were playing a game of Twenty Questions while thumb wrestling.

He pondered that thought, pinning Shiro’s thumb down. “I’d say… Atlantis.”

“Atlantis?” He snorted. “But that’s not a real place.”

“Well, it could be.” He pouted and crossed his arms playfully. He glanced back at him for a moment. “What’s yours?”

“Tokyo.” Shiro smiled. “I was born in the US, but my parents were from Japan. When I was younger, my parents would take me there every year to visit our relatives. I’d love to go back someday.”

Keith started to lean against his frame and smiled. “That’s pretty cool.” He looked down, absentmindedly playing with his hand. “Do you have any pets?”

He shook his head “I had a cat, but she passed away about a year ago. Old age…”

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” he frowned. “Well, I have a dog. His name’s Kosmo, and he seems to think that he’s a lap dog when he’s actually almost a hundred pounds.”

Shiro laughed. “Please, tell me you have pictures.”

“Of course, I do!” He grinned as he went to take his phone out, but his hand froze just as it was sitting in his pocket. His most recent images of him were bound to be him naked in his bed, displayed lewdly for Atlas and for his follower base. He didn’t even know where his most recent picture of Kosmo was at the top of his head! He couldn’t show Shiro his phone, far too embarrassed. His mind started to wander, and of course he was coming to the worst of conclusions. He didn’t want to bring this up when things were going so well. “Hey, Shiro? Do you ever worry about that someone might not be with you for… well, _all_ of you?”

There was a pause. “All the time,” he said. “I think about that a lot with my scars and with my arm. But I’m having those feelings a lot less now.”

Keith frowned, wanting to try and at least be honest with Shiro. He had to tell him about his lifestyle. He wanted to tell him about Akira and about his stupid blog, and he wanted to tell him about the relationships he’d made with people online because those were so much _easier_ to be a part of and maintain. When he was with someone in real life, it felt much harder.

“But what about with interests? Do you feel like you may have hobbies that someone you might wanna be with would disagree with? Have you ever done something or been involved with something that could be considered a deal breaker?”

Shiro quirked a brow. “Do you run a gang?”

“Well, no,” he chuckled.

“Do you manipulate or take advantage of people?”

“No, I don’t.” Keith started to trail off.

Shiro was still pressing on. “Are you a bad person?”

“I’d like to think that I’m not,” he smiled.

“Then, I don’t think that there’s anything you can swing at me that’d make me think of you any less,” Shiro started to reassure him with a gentle smile.

Keith had to look away, letting go of him. “You say that now, but…”

“But what?”

Keith didn’t answer. He stayed pretty silent.

“Hey…” Shiro crooned. “Look at me.”

But he couldn’t bring himself to. He was far too nervous to face him and tell him. He could hear the hurt starting to form in his voice, and he immediately felt guilty.

“Please…” Shiro gently took his chin in his hand, tilting Keith up to face him.

Keith had to blink away a sudden wave of tears. “Shiro…” He started to lean closer to him, his hand on his shoulder.

That was when Shiro leaned closer, and Keith’s eyes fluttered closed when being kissed. It felt electric, and he could feel himself start to melt. _No._ He couldn’t do this. Not while he was with Atlas. Shiro was far too sweet to him, and he didn’t want to break his heart. He forced himself to pull away, sparks still trailing along his lips.

“Shiro…” He shook his head. “I-I can’t tell you. Not right now…”

“Well, that’s okay,” Shiro assured him. “I don’t mind. We can make it work.”

He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I need some time.”

“W-wait.”

Before they could continue to talk about this further, they were both startled away from each other when Lance loudly pointed them out, the two of them bristling and shaking.

“There are our star-crossed lovers!” Lance teased them, and he was grinning from ear to ear.

“Well… I wouldn’t say that.”

Keith did a double take when Shiro said that, and he was too pained to make a response or question him. If only he knew. If only he had the guts to just come right out and tell him. He didn’t want Shiro to beat himself up for this. It really wasn’t his fault! It was him. It was stupid, selfish him not wanting to take that next step.

Even if he was the one that caused this, that didn’t make it hurt any less.

\--

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** You ok?  
> You’ve been quiet lately.

_Keith looked at his notifications. He’d_ barely touched his food, and he wearily fed Kosmo while lamenting over just how terrible he felt. But seeing Atlas’ message pop up did make him feel better. At least he could count on him.

> **red-lion:** I think so… something happened on my date the other day. We were at this winery with our IRL friends. They had their fun, but I think I screwed it up when we went in the vineyard without them.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Huh.  
> That’s funny. We went to a winery too. We had a good time, and my date’s friend kept teasing us.
> 
> **red-lion:** What a coincidence lol  
>  So are u 2 official??
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I don’t think so. I told him about what was wrong with my arm, and he seemed curious enough but I’m not getting my hope ups that much. I think he’s only seeing me because he feels sorry for me.

Keith frowned at this. How could his date make him feel this way? He wanted to nip that in the bud right then and there.

> **red-lion:** Atlas. If u really think he feels that way, then stop seeing him. It’s not worth it if he’s only dating you out of pity ok? You don’t deserve a relationship like that. But if he’s just as nervous or maybe you might be wrong about him, then talk to him. You’ll never know what the truth unless you do. Right?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Idk. I feel like he is, but he’s also sweet in his own ways. It makes me wanna see where this goes. But you’re right, Akira. I should drop him.
> 
> **red-lion:** Don’t even give him the time of day. Good riddance lol
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** You always know just what to say :) Thank you Akira.
> 
> **red-lion:** Of course <3  
> How about we take care of each other? You deserve some real pleasure from someone that isn’t afraid to take care of you.

Now, this made him feel much better. The prospect of this made him abandon his dinner entirely, and he undid his pants when walking over to the bedroom.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Absolutely <3

\--

_Keith fidgeted in his seat after_ grabbing a snack from the vending machine. He noticed Lance walk into the room, and he perked up. He was hoping to go on another date with Shiro, and maybe this time he could actually talk to him! He had to. He knew that he had to end it with Atlas, but before he did he wanted to make sure that this would work.

“Lance?” He beckoned him closer, starting to blush when thinking of the prospect of seeing Shiro again. “Hey. Are you and Allura doing anything again soon? I kinda want to see Shiro again. I think we’re really going somewhere.”

He blinked. “You think so? That’s not what Shiro said.”

“What?” Keith frowned, starting to feel pale. “What do you mean? W-what did he say?”

“Allura warned you that he was just getting over a rough time. He suspects that you don’t actually want to be with him, so he requested to not go on these dates with us anymore.”

His world stopped. “No… He’s got me all wrong! Please, I want to see him again.”

“That’s not up to me,” Lance shrugged. “You’ll have to go through Allura, and I don’t think she’d be so easy on you. He’d trusted that she’d find someone good for him, after all.”

“Do you really think I’m that shallow?” he snapped. “If you and Allura really think that, fine! I’ll find a way. Allura works at Altea University. I can just go there and talk to him.”

“Keith, listen to yourself!” Lance held his shoulders. “Take a hint. He doesn’t want to see you.”

“B-but I…” He trailed off, quickly shaking his head. “Can’t you just tell Shiro that I’m sorry? And that if he wants to talk to me again, I’ll explain everything? He knew that Lance would have no idea what he was talking about, but he just wanted him to give Shiro this message. Or at least, relay it to Allura so _she_ could give it to him. He never thought that he’d be cut off like this, and he felt lost.

Lance shrugged. “Don’t be surprised if he doesn’t respond to this. He seemed pretty firm about it.”

With that, Lance left him alone, and Keith stared down at the table, just wondering where the hell to begin with explaining everything to him and wondering why Shiro felt the way that he did.

\--

_Maybe he was a little addicted_ to talking to Atlas, but he was just so much easier to be open with. Plus, he really needed his help right now.

> **red-lion:** Hey Atlas? Idk what to do. Those dates I’d been having were going so well, but he suddenly stopped talking to me. What do I do?

Atlas wasn’t online yet, but when Keith heard a ping a little while later, he hurried to check it out, taking a shaky breath.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Did you do something to upset him? It sounds like he’s trying to tell you something.
> 
> **red-lion:** I was afraid you’d say that. I want to see him again.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I’d give him his space. He probably needs some time to think. After all, I’ve had relationships that ended badly before. It’s hard to bounce right back from that, especially if what happened deeply hurt me.

Keith tilted his head. Some of what he was saying seemed to sound familiar. As Kosmo hopped up onto the bed, he gathered up his thoughts long enough to come up with another response for Atlas.

> **red-lion:** So  
> What happened with this relationship?

Atlas typed for a long time, and Keith kept worrying his lip. Petting Kosmo seemed to help him enough, but he was so focused on wondering what he could do to fix this that it only helped so much. His heart pounded, and he quickly read through the response that Atlas finally sent him.

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Before I begin, this has always been really hard for me to talk about.  
> But I trust you, Akira.  
> I had this ex. Let’s just call him A. We were together for a very long time. I almost married him. But something happened to me that brought the relationship down a wrong turn. I was enlisted in the Marines, and they wanted me to be deployed overseas. Of course, A didn’t want me to go, but I didn’t listen. I wanted to do this for myself. I know that it’s my own fault, but A said that there was a possibility that he wouldn’t be there for me when I came back. And I took that gamble.  
> Of course it was really bad, but there was one day that pretty much ended my time there in an instant. We were in an abandoned town, and we were doing a perimeter check. Searching for survivors, checking for traps, the works. There was this one last building, the biggest one in town, and that was the only one we needed to check.  
> Everything in my mind was telling me not to go in there and that it’d be too dangerous, but I went against my better judgment. I took it like I had to go in there myself so that no other soldiers would get hurt. I think the whole place was filled with mine, but as soon as I got settled inside, there was this bomb…

This was all scarily familiar. Keith definitely heard this story before, but where?

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** That’s how I lost my arm.

He audibly yelped and dropped his phone. This was what happened to _Shiro_ in _his_ accident, verbatim! But there was no way! It couldn’t be him. This had to be some horrifyingly huge coincidence. A lot of people had ex-boyfriends where their names began with “A.” A lot of people were affected by wars and severely injured by them. This was a story that could be heard all the time, after a veteran came back to tell it!

He realized that he’d been stalling too long. He hurried to pick his phone back up, pretending like he’d just heard this story for the very first time.

> **red-lion:** Fuck… that’s horrible. I’m sorry.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** No worries. I guess, you can see that A didn’t really wanna stick around, and it took me a very long time to bounce back. And this guy. You remember the one I was telling you about, right?
> 
> His throat went dry. That guy was… well, it was _him._ His chest was aching with how hard his heart was pounding.
> 
> **red-lion:** Yeah I remember.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I took your advice, and I dropped him.

_No._

Keith felt his whole world crumbling down. All of the pieces were coming together. He just gave Atlas—no, _Shiro—_ advice to completely drop _him,_ and he realized now that the assumption that was made about him was completely wrong. He wanted to cry. He couldn’t believe this was all happening right now!

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I think you were right about him. One of my friends from work assured me that it was the right decision. I wouldn’t really be happy if someone was only with me because they felt sorry for me.

“No, no, no! Shiro…” He quickly shook his head, struggling to type. There were so many things he wanted to say, but every time he’d see them on the screen he’d completely backtrack. _“You’ve got him all wrong.” “That’s not true, and I know it isn’t. Because the man you were seeing is me!” “I’d never do this because I felt sorry for you!”_ None of them fit. He felt too embarrassed. How was he supposed to set the record straight when Shiro didn’t even want to _see_ him, let alone talk to him?

> **red-lion:** Atlas  
> Hear me out.  
> I think you might be wrong about him.
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** What do you mean?
> 
> **red-lion:** Idk I’m wrong about things sometimes. I just have that feeling.

_Wait._ The signs were all there, but Keith couldn’t really know for _sure_ that it was really Shiro at the other end of the conversation. Maybe this Atlas guy made this whole story up. He’d heard freaky things about people on the internet that turned out to be total creeps or stalkers. It wouldn’t be entirely out of line to think that, would it?

> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** Idk Akira…
> 
> **red-lion:** I just have a feeling, that’s all.  
> Oh, I have an idea!  
> We’ve known each other for a long while, right? I was thinking, why don’t we show each other our faces?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** ????  
>  Akira, you’re confusing me  
> You know I don’t really show my face.

Keith’s fingers were still shaking while he typed.

> **red-lion:** I don’t either. But I think it’d be fun. We could do a call together. Maybe on Skype or something? Please Atlas?
> 
> **atlas-the-black-paladin:** I guess we can try it out. What’s your skype?

_Thank the stars._ Keith practically sang with relief and shared him his user: RedLion1023.

Shiro’s user was Atlas229

_\--_

_Keith was so nervous. They agreed_ that they were going to see each other face to face that Friday night, now that there were going to be no distractions for either of them. Whether they’d be work related or life related, they were both free for once, long enough to do this call. There was so much that Keith wanted to say and tell him, and he didn’t even know where to begin. He’d thought about backing out several times, in all honesty. There was that one fear in the back of his mind. What if it _wasn’t_ him? And if it was him, then what if Shiro was reaffirmed that it was the right decision to not see him anymore, just upon looking at him? For _whatever_ reason, really.

He showed up online a little too early, staring at Shiro’s status. He was still offline for several minutes, and he was shaking with anticipation. What if he doesn’t show up at all? God, this was kissing him!

He showed up online a little too early, staring at Shiro’s status. He was still offline for several minutes, and he was shaking with anticipation. What if he doesn’t show up at all? God, this was killing him!

He then barely noticed when Shiro finally sent him a message.

> **Atlas229:** Hey Akira! Sorry, I ran a little late coming home from work.
> 
> Keith couldn’t help the smile forming on his face.
> 
> **RedLion1023:** Don’t worry about it, Atlas. I’m so glad you’re here <3  
> Are you ready?

That was a very loaded question. Not even _he_ was ready for it. But he watched the loading bar while Shiro was typing, the knot in his stomach growing tighter and tighter.

> **Atlas229:** Not yet. I ordered takeout and they’re at the door  
> How about this to tide you over?? :) <3

He sent an image file. Keith waited for it to download and opened it up, his eyes widening.

There he was. That soft, white hair, those warm eyes… the scar on the bridge of his nose that his eyes wandered to when he wasn’t trying to look directly at his lips. And there was his sweet smile. And as Keith stared at this picture of Shiro, he wanted cry at the realization of how stupidly oblivious he was.

The sudden ringtone for the video call startled him, and he hurried to dry his eyes in case there was any sign of tears. There weren’t, and he took a deep breath before answering it. Keith knew he didn’t really look his best. He was wearing sweatpants, and his hair was a little mussed up from laying donw, but he didn’t care. He wanted Shiro to see him. He already had time to prepare for the fact that the man he’d been ogling over online was indeed Shiro, but actually getting confirmation by seeing his face now was still mind blowing. He could barely contain his surprise.

“Hi.” He smiled, watching Shiro do a double take. He’d blinked several times, rubbed his eyes, and he even pinched himself. Poor soul. He had rigorous training, both physically and mentally, when being in the Marines. But he was just as oblivious as Keith was.

“Hi…” He trailed off. “So wait. _You’re_ Akira?”

He nodded modestly. “I’m really sorry. I never realized that you thought I only kept dating you because I felt sorry for you, and I wanted to make sure you knew that wasn’t true. I didn’t know another way how to do it.”

_“You’re_ Akira?!”

He was still shocked, or surprised, or whatever, and Keith was laughing while nodding again. “Yes. That’s what I wanted to tell you. At the vineyard… I was too nervous to bring it up, because I didn’t think that you’d wanna be with someone that did what I did.”

“What? That would’ve made me a huge hypocrite now, wouldn’t it?”

“I guess you’re right,” he grinned, holding onto his computer screen as if that’d give him some kind of leverage. “I know I sent you the wrong message, and I’m sorry. I just didn’t want you to worry about it. It was you the whole time!”

“You have nothing to apologize for, Keith. But of course, I forgive you.” He was just calming down from the shock, breathing out a sigh. “How long have you known?”

“Only a couple days. When you were telling me how you lost your arm… Just. Wow, what a small world!”

“Right?” he chuckled. “And Keith, I want you to know that I’d never make you stop doing your blog. We both know how important they are to us, and so long as you’d let me have mine, I have no problem with you having yours.”

“Of course, you can keep yours up, too. I’m not going to make you take it down,” he insisted.

Shiro smiled while taking a deep breath. “I severely misjudged you, Keith. I’m so sorry, too.”

“It’s okay, Shiro,” he smiled, his fingers touching the computer screen. He wished he was right in the room with him. He would show him just how much he cared for him. “Would we be able to see each other soon? Hopefully on a date?”

He chuckled. “I would like to take you somewhere without Allura and Lance tagging along, yes.”

“Great,” he grinned. “I’d love that too.”

“I just wish we didn’t do everything backwards,” Shiro teased.

Keith couldn’t help but laugh. “I know. But now we know more about each other. And we can show we’re in a relationship in more ways than one.”

“Do you want to make our relationship public on our blogs too?” When Keith nodded, Shiro gave him a big smile. “That sounds like it’d be a lot of fun. Let’s make it a big reveal.”

“Absolutely!” he grinned. All of his nerves had ebbed away, and he blew Shiro a kiss. “It was nice to meet you. Atlas.”

He blushed and nodded. “You too. Akira.”

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](http://gabriel-the-cryptid.tumblr.com)   
>  [sheith blog](http://coming-home-to-you.tumblr.com)   
>  [twitter](http://twitter.com/PaladinGabe)


End file.
